To Be A Hero
by Oddchamp
Summary: (This story is a sequel to 'A Second Chance'. Read that first. This was edited for spelling, etc by user Spacedimentio) When Prince Peasley of the Beanbean Kingdom is kidnapped by mysterious forces, it's up to one man to save him- Luigi! And apparently, Dimentio wants to tag along too. Not only that, but there are new forces at play, and Dimentio is somehow related to them.
1. Prolouge

It was a quiet, cloudy spring night in the Mushroom Kingdom, where the Mario brothers slept peacefully in their cottage in the woods. The air outside was warm and humid, but inside it was nice and cool. The little wooden house was silent and picturesque, almost perfect-

-Until a rapid, loud knocking came to the door. The racket woke Mario from his slumber, but he stayed in bed to see if they would leave. When the knocking persisted, he reluctantly got up and stumbled through the darkness.

As he opened the door, it hit something made of metal, producing a loud clash as it fell over. Mario looked at the ground and saw **a** soldier from the Beanbean Kingdom lying on the ground. He was unconscious and breathing shallow breaths.

 _A Beanish soldier?_ Mario thought. _What's he doing all the way out here?_

"Eh, Bro," Luigi groaned, suddenly behind him. "What's with all the noise? It's three in the-" He glanced down at the ground. "Is he dead?!"

With the sound of inward rushing air, Dimentio teleported next to the brothers. A few months back, he had come back to life through a deal with Queen Jaydes and decided to hang around Luigi and Mario. He was more of a nuisance than anything else.

"I heard screaming," Dimentio said cheerfully. "Is there a fire?"

Without waiting for a reply, he continued, "Oh, there seems to be a comatose Beanish man on the ground! How did this happen..." He glanced at the brothers. "...Luigi?"

"What? Why are you blaming me?!" Luigi demanded. "I just woke up."

"Yes, but you do have an interest in Beanish men," Dimentio said, glancing at his hands.

Mario rolled his eyes. Dimentio loved to get Luigi riled up and angry, for some reason or another.

He noticed that the soldier was clutching a piece of paper in his hand. He knelt down near the sleeping man and gently pulled the paper out of his hand. After a bit of work uncrumpling it, he managed to read the smeared writing on the paper: "TO: LUIGI. FROM: BEANISH ROYAL GUARD. URGENT! READ AND REPLY WITH HASTE!"

 _Huh, so it's a letter. Wonder why they couldn't have just sent this through the mail,_ Mario thought. He stood up and tapped Luigi on the arm.

"As if you're any better-" Luigi stopped yelling and looked down. "Oh, was he holding that?" he asked at a normal volume. Mario nodded. "Alright, let's see here..."

He read the letter aloud: "Dear Luigi, we send this letter with dire news **.** **O** ur dearest Prince Peasley has been kidnapped," he turned pale, but kept reading **.** "We have already sent two search parties, neither of which have returned after two weeks. Desperate times call for desperate measures, as you know. Please come to the castle ASAP. Bring your brother if you think he will be necessary. With hope, the Beanish Royal Guard. P.S.: If our messenger come **s** in person, please tell him never to do that again, as the captain has said multiple times now. We know your mail system is much more efficient than sprinting from one kingdom to another..."

Luigi folded the paper up again. "The rest is just a monologue about the messenger being a hot head."

"Well, this is unexpected," Dimentio said. "Usually it's Peach."

"Yeah, really," Luigi said, still pale. "I need to get prepared. If he's been gone for two weeks-"

"Wait, are you going alone?" Mario asked suddenly.

Luigi sighed. "Well, I feel like I should do this on my own! I mean, the letter was addressed to me, and I never really get a chance to do anything by myself, so..."

"If you think you're ready," Mario said.

"I... I think I am."

Mario hugged him tightly."Good luck," he whispered.

After a long, anxious plane flight - once again, much faster than running from the Mushroom Kingdom, through the borderlands **,** and into the Beanbean Kingdom – he arrived at the castle. He was quickly brought in by the castle guards and brought to the captain of the Royal Guard.

"Ah, you're here," the captain said, almost as if he wanted to follow with 'Took you long enough'.

"So, did Ryelie run all the way there?" he asked conversationally. "The messenger, I mean."

"Um, yes, sir," Luigi said. The captain was always intimidating to Luigi. His stare could cut diamonds.

The captain rolled his eyes. "'Course he did. Well, here's the situation," he said without hesitation. "Peasley, as you know, was kidnapped, by some...foul creatures. They headed south, into uncharted territory. We sent two search parties - once again, you know this already - and they haven't come back." He grimaced. "Well, one member of the first party did, but not in a good way. He had fled the search and ended up half-mad. That's why we sent the second party- to find our prince and the others."

"How many people were sent, sir?" Luigi asked nervously.

"All together...? Fifty men."

 _Fifty?!_ Luigi thought, his heart pounding. "That's...horrible," he said.

The captain nodded.

"So, what are these 'foul creatures'?" Luigi asked, eager to move on from the subject.

"Eh..." The captain looked around the room they were in. "Hey, Liman!" he barked at one of the soldiers.

"Yes, sir!" Liman answered.

"Can you show Luigi the...creature?"

"Yes, sir..." Liman said, much more hesitant.

Liman led Luigi down to the previously destroyed dungeon.

"Uh, we have to keep it down here so it doesn't escape," Liman explained.

"Okay. When did you repair the dungeon?" Luigi asked.

"Last month. Took a while, but ten tons of cement can really work wonders," Liman said with a laugh.

As the two descended, Liman lit a torch and carried it in front of him. The light made the gloomy atmosphere somehow more and less creepy at the same time. This dungeon wasn't musty or humid like you would expect from one, but rather dry and covered in a thin layer of plaster dust.

"So... You're sure this is stable?" Luigi asked nervously.

"Yeah, should be," Liman said, then frowned. "Makes a body wonder, though."

"Wonder what?"

"I never actually saw them repair the dungeon, so I don't know how they did it. How did they do it?" he said.

"I... I wouldn't know."

They reached a door at the bottom of the stairwell, and beyond it was the prison cells. A loud groaning came from the end of the room.

"We had to get all of the other prisoners out of here so they didn't panic," Liman explained.

"Panic?"

"Yeah. The, um, creature tends to make people freak out **.** " Liman avoided eye contact.

"Oh. Good **,** " Luigi said sarcastically. "I'm guessing it's all the way in the back?"

Liman nodded, slightly pale. "Yes," he said hoarsely.

The two approached the end of the hallway slowly and carefully. The groaning was doubtlessly coming from the last cell. It sounded like an animal in pain, almost pitiful if it weren't so loud and low.

Luigi peered through the bars of the cell and saw only darkness. He leaned closer to them and said to himself, "Weird, I don't see anything-"

Something grotesque slammed itself against the bars and screeched, "LEAVE!"

Luigi screamed and jumped back, clutching his chest. "W-What the- What in the world-!" He sputtered, trying to get the air back in his lungs.

"I said, leave!" the creature screamed.

"Gah! It hasn't talked before," Liman said with horror and astonishment.

Upon closer inspection, the creature looked like something that was a toad, but covered in black bumps that seemed to move in the light. Its eyes were pure yellow, no pupils.

"What happened to you...?" Luigi muttered.

"Hadn't had anyone worth talking to!" it hissed at Liman. It turned its gross, scowling eyes on Luigi. "But you, you're different from these people!"

"You wouldn't believe how often I hear that," Luigi said.

The toad went on, ignoring Luigi's remark **.** "The one who I serve, he has a vendetta against you! He wants you dead more than most, and he hates many!"

"Okay, but why... What happened to your skin?" Luigi asked.

"All of the people that kidnapped the Prince looked like this. We think it's some sort of disease," Liman explained. "It wasn't just toads, either. There were koopas, goombas, even Beanish people."

"Really? That's crazy!" Luigi said with disbelief.

"Yes..." Liman said, thinking. "There was also someone else with them. A leader, I think."

"What did they look like?"

"They were short, and wore a mask like that of a plague doctor - you know, the ones that look like a bird **'s** beak? - and wore a peasant's dress. That's all I can remember," Liman described, then shook his head. "It just amazes me that someone would have the gall to take our prince away like that."

"Wait a second, where's Queen Bean?" Luigi asked suddenly. "Hasn't she done anything?"

"She's the one who sent the search parties, and she...doesn't want to be spoken to right now. She's very distraught **,** " Liman said, wringing his hands.

"Anyways, that's what kidnapped him. Let's get out of this creepy dungeon-" he continued **.**

"Wait!" the toad shrieked. "Are you going to go after that prince?"

"Yeah," Luigi said.

The toad suddenly started laughing, so much that it shook. "There's no way you'd ever survive! The one I serve has sent horrible monsters to block your way there for miles, enough to kill and intimidate any sane man!"

For a moment, Luigi was scared. Was he sure he could do this? Then, cold hard determination filled his heart. "Alright," he said with a shrug. "Nothing I can't handle."

"Really? And what makes you think that?"

"Because," Luigi thought for a moment. "Because, I'm Luigi! And I can take down anything that stands in my way! God strike me down if I can't!"

Liman, behind Luigi's back, nervously glanced upward. Nothing happened. He let out a quiet sigh of relief.

"Besides, if it's for Peasley - and the rest of the Beanbean Kingdom, - I'll do anything!" Luigi finished confidently.

The toad stared at him. Instead of speaking, it backed away into the darkness of its cell.

"Hello?" Liman called. "Guess it's done talking."

"Guess so. Should I try and ask it for directions to where they took Peasley, or...?" Luigi asked.

"No, I wouldn't try," Liman shook his head. "He doesn't seem like the obeying type."

With awkward small talk, the two ascended to the ground floor of the castle. Luigi bid his goodbyes to those in the Royal Guard, and started on his journey southward.

"I will find him," he muttered to himself as the Beanbean kingdom became smaller and smaller in the distance behind him. "I will see him again."

"Oh, why the long face, Mario?" Dimentio asked the man in red, leaning on the table.

Mario didn't answer, only stared off into space.

Dimentio sighed. "Come on, don't be like that," he said **,** putting his hand on Mario's shoulder. "You can tell me anything. I'm great with secrets, you know."

Mario glared at him. "Don't touch me," he grumbled.

Dimentio took his hand off of Mario's shoulder. "Fine then," he muttered. "Don't say anything. Probably nothing I could help with, anyway."

Mario sighed. "I'm just worried about Luigi," he murmured and put his head in his hands.

Dimentio smirked with satisfaction. He was getting somewhere.

Dimentio didn't want to be enemies with Mario- Heck, who did? -but he didn't want to be friends with him either. What he really wanted was some way to get closer to Luigi. And what better way to do that then to get on his big, idolized brother's good side?

"Well, I'm sure he can do fine on his own," Dimentio said assuredly. "I mean, he built a giant death robot from scratch, he's pretty smart."

"I know, I know **.** " He sighed again. "I just wish someone could, you know, keep tabs on him or something."

Dimentio thought for a minute. "I could do that," he said.

Mario looked up at him suddenly. "You-You could?"

"Well, of course! I mean, it'd be pretty easy **.** Just watch him from the shadows and such," Dimentio said. It would probably be a lot harder than he was making it sound, but he didn't want Mario to know that.

Mario shook his head. "No, no, he doesn't need anyone to watch him... I shouldn't..."

"It wouldn't be any trouble. He would hardly even know I was there!" Dimentio said convincingly.

"But you don't even know which way he went-"

Mario was interrupted by a loud groaning from the other room. Mario had dragged the Beanish soldier inside and laid him down on his bed while he was asleep so the poor man didn't freeze. Appearently, he was awake.

"Hey," Dimentio called over to the soldier. "Where did the search parties going after Prince Peasley go?"

"South..." he moaned sleepily.

"Then I'll go south!" Dimentio said with a satisfied smile.

"Okay, then," Mario said. "Just promise me one thing."

"What's that?"

Mario suddenly grabbed Dimentio by the collar and pulled him down to his level. "Don't come back until Luigi comes home safe, you hear me?"

Dimentio nodded quickly. "Y-Yes, of course-"

"Promise!" Mario's eyes were full of fire.

"I promise! Calm down, let go of my shirt, please..."

Luigi walked for a long time and didn't spot any enemies, or either of the search parties, both of which worried him. _Am I going the right way?_ he wondered.

Eventually, as it usually happened, the sky began to darken as the sun set. Luigi set up a small camp - or rather **,** set his suit case down in an area with fewer trees than others and sat with it – and tried to relax.

 _Okay. You're on your way. Just gotta make it past hoards of horrifying monsters that used to be people and rescue Peasley from whoever's powerful enough to control all of those disgusting things,_ Luigi thought.

He covered his face in this hands. "Oh, who am I kidding? I'm gonna die out here," he said aloud.

Between his fingers, he saw something moving within the trees. It looked humanoid, but who knew what it really was? He reached slowly for a small rock and held it for a few seconds, waiting to see if the figure would go away. It didn't. He threw the rock at it.

It made a direct hit. The figure cried out in pain, "Son of a bitch!"

Luigi recognized the voice, but still hoped he was wrong. He walked up to the now doubled over figure anyway.

Sure enough, just as he thought, he saw Dimentio. He was on the ground, clutching his stomach and groaning pathetically.

"Dimentio, why are you here?" Luigi demanded.

Dimentio looked up. "Oh, hello there. There's a very good explanation for all of this, if you'll listen."

"Go ahead. I'm listening," Luigi said impatiently.

"You see, your brother was worried about you, and he said-"

"Seriously?!" Luigi groaned. "I'm not a kid, I don't need anyone watching me."

"And he said that he wished that someone could keep tabs on you, so I offered to-"

"I mean, really? I've done things on my own before."

"And he made me promise that I wouldn't come back until you come home safe **,** " Dimentio finished, and stood up. "You weren't really listening, were you?"

"Oh, I was, trust me," Luigi grumbled. "Well, you're here now, so you might as well help me out."

"Well, I- Wait, what was that?" Dimentio said,

"I said, that since you're already here, you might as well help me," Luigi repeated. "You obviously wanted to help, so why not just accompany me instead of spying on me?"

Dimentio stared at him. "You mean, like a partnership?"

"Uh, sure. Why not?" Luigi shrugged.

Dimentio grinned widely. "Well, I'd like nothing more."


	2. Chapter 1

Prince Peasley woke up somewhere cold and dark. His limbs were numbed to the point where he could hardly move. If only to make matters worse, he could hardly remember how he got where he was. He felt like he had woken up here quite a few times now, but he couldn't be sure...

He remembered some grotesque figures storming his castle, and fighting those horrible monsters off, then someone in a strange mask appeared... Then nothing but dim images of movement across a long distance.

He looked around, as best as he could. He was definitely in some kind of cage. Not a cell, though. The floor was steel and so were the bars. Outside of the cage, he only saw darkness.

Thankfully, his hearing was not so impaired. He heard voices from afar:

"Have you done the job?" a shrill, ear-piercing voice hissed.

"Of course, my Master," a second, feminine, lilting voice responded. "The one you seek to destroy is on his way."

"Where is the Potion Master?" the shrill voice asked.

"She is...resting, sir. She's quite exhausted from the endeavor," the second voice answered. "You know, she is quite young, I don't know if she's-"

"She's ready if I say she is!" the shrill voice shrieked. "Send her to guard the mountain."

"...Yes, my Master. Your word is my law," the second voice said reluctantly.

Something about the servant's voice - whoever it was - seemed to have 'traitor' written all over it. Either Peasley was being oversensitive due to his situation, or his captor was too stupid to realize this.

Slowly, the air turned colder and Peasley began to shiver. He looked around and couldn't find any source for the chill other than nature itself. He closed his eyes and tried to ignore it. He couldn't move his arms, or even pull his cape over himself, so why try?

He began to drift off...

The next morning, Luigi and Dimentio set off together.

"According to my map, there's a huge mountain range up ahead," Luigi said, glancing up from the large map he held as they walked.

"Where, and how did you get a map?" Dimentio asked. "There's no one around for miles!"

"Ran into some traveling merchants yesterday. They didn't need it anymore, so they gave it to me in exchange for some mushrooms," Luigi explained.

"Really? How do you know it's not outdated?" Dimentio asked.

Luigi pointed in the direction they were heading. "Look, over there. Mountains."

Dimentio leaned over and looked. "Not very 'huge' to me," he muttered.

"Yeah, but they're far away," Luigi argued. "They're probably bigger up close, dummy."

"Hey! I meant that I've seen much bigger, don't assume I'm an idiot," he said, sounding hurt.

Luigi rolled his eyes. _I should be nicer to him, but he's just so...easy to be rude to_ , he thought, feeling guilty but not showing it.

"So, how wide is it?" Dimentio asked, breaking his train of thought.

"Too wide to go around in a reasonable amount of time," Luigi answered. "We'll have to go over one of the shorter peaks. Luckily, there's a fairly short path we can take through here **.** " He pointed it out on his map. "We should be able to get through there in about a day, if we go fast enough."

"Seems we don't have much choice anyways," Dimentio said. "How long do you think it will take to reach the mountains?"

"Hopefully not long," Luigi sighed. "If we keep good pace, we should get to the trail tomorrow." Dimentio nodded.

The two continued their trek through the forest. As they went on, the trees became smaller and less frequent. Soon, only a single line of trees followed a river that had ended at a small lake that Luigi had passed the day before. The ground became firmer as the water in it became more and more scarce, but didn't diminish totally.

Like some sort of primal instinct, as the forest disappeared behind them, the two became slightly more nervous. There was less cover from enemies here, so if they encountered anything here, they would have to stand and face it.

"So, what do you have in your suitcase?" Dimentio asked suddenly, trying to make small talk. "Besides clothes and such, that is."

"I'm glad you asked!" Luigi said, setting down the suitcase. He popped it open and pulled out something odd: two metal gloves.

"What are those? Gauntlets?" Dimentio asked.

"Not just any gauntlets, Dimentio. They're scientific gauntlets," Luigi said, taking off his normal gloves and putting the other ones on. "Observe!" Luigi balled up his fists, which then burst into flame.

"What the-" Dimentio jumped back slightly. "I thought-"

"Thought I used lightning? Well, I do. But, with these, I can use them to make fire!" he said triumphantly. "I call them, 'L-Brand Transference Gloves'!"

Dimentio looked from the fire and back to Luigi. "You... You made those?" he said in disbelief.

"Yeah. You wouldn't believe how much spare time I have," Luigi laughed. The fires went out. "Got the idea last winter. You like 'em?"

"That's... That's incredible! You actually... Wow," Dimentio shook his head. "I mean, I knew you could build things but, this is... Wow."

Luigi laughed again. "Yeah. I just brought 'em because they might come in handy," he smirked. He slid the gloves off and back into the suitcase. "They're just a prototype, though. I want them to be able to double my lightning as well as give me fire, but that might take a while."

They continued walking through the now hilly land.

"Why did you want to know, by the way?" Luigi asked.

"Oh, just curious," Dimentio answered. He shrugged. "Hey, what's that up ahead?" he said, pointing to a figure not too far from them.

"I...don't know," Luigi answered, putting a hand above his eyes to block out glare. "I think it's walking toward us, though."

"Oh, good," Dimentio muttered.

After Luigi said that, the figure started to run at them. As it approached, Luigi recognized it as a Koopa Troopa **,** but with the same black bumps and yellow eyes as the Toad in the dungeon. "Oh, crap, it's going to try to kill us," he said.

"What?" Dimentio asked.

"I said-" Luigi began before he was tackled to the ground.

Dimentio kicked the Koopa off of him and fired a ball of magic at it. Before any other moves could be made, the creature exploded into dust.

"I think I recognize what that Koopa had," Dimentio said slowly.

"Really?!" Luigi asked, getting up. "Because the captain of the Royal Guard said that a bunch of different creatures with blotches like that kidnapped Peasley."

"Yes. It's a kind of parasite, one that can be used to control the mind of the host if you can command the parasite itself. However, only one kind of person could control them, that I know of," he answered thoughtfully.

"Why did it drop dead like that?" Luigi asked. "You'd think it would be stronger."

"I guess it was at the end of its life. The parasite can only live in a body for as long as the body can keep itself alive. Then, the poor creature dies **,** " Dimentio said.

"So, you said that only one person could control these things?" Luigi asked. Dimentio nodded. "Who?"

"I'd...rather not talk about her," Dimentio said quietly. "Let's just say it's probably not her. Perhaps someone else mastered the art, who knows?"

"But why?" Luigi noticed the mournful expression on Dimentio's face. "Oh, geez, is she dead-"

"No, she's not dead! As far as I know," Dimentio snapped. "She's not the kind to die young, if you know what I mean."

"Yeah, I get that," Luigi said. "Let's keep moving. Like I said, we need to keep a good pace if we want to get through here."

 _I can't help but wonder_ , Luigi thought. _What's his connection to this whole parasite thing? He seems kind of emotional about it._ _Why? God, every time I think I'm getting closer to him, something weird pops up._

He looked at Dimentio as he walked and thought, _Who are you, really?_

"Hold on," Dimentio said, putting up a hand. "I think someone's watching us."

Luigi looked around. "I don't see any-" He stopped when his eyes caught a shadow in one of the sparse trees. The shadow's whole body was a silhouette, except for its glowing white eyes.

The shadow made eye contact with Luigi. For a long moment, no one moved. Then, the figure evaporated.

"What - or who, - was that?" Luigi wondered.

"A spy," Dimentio said. "Possibly from whoever kidnapped Peasley, possibly someone else entirely, but definitely a spy."

Luigi stared at the tree for a moment before shaking his head. "This whole thing keeps getting weirder, and it's only the second day," he said. "Glad we're getting it out of the way, though, right?"

After hours of slow advancement, the two reached an abandoned camp at the base of the mountain. If there had been flags to mark who owned the camp, they were stolen or destroyed. It had been quite some time since anyone had been near the place: there were no footprints, and the color of the tents had faded from their bright colors to dull, depressing grays, and a piece of firewood in the center of the camp disintegrated when touched.

"Do you think the Beanish search parties passed through here?" Dimentio asked.

"No, there would have been some mark they left," Luigi answered. "Let's...not stop here. This place gives me the creeps."

"Really? I think it's charming!" Dimentio said, floating around the slanted and destroyed tents. "It's got history to it, you know?" He went into one of the tents and started looking through the items.

"Dimentio, you really shouldn't root around in that!" Luigi said anxiously. "It probably belongs to someone, and you're violating their privacy!"

"So what? They're probably dead, so they don't need it!" he argued.

"How would you like it if I went through your things while you were a ghost?!" Luigi demanded.

Dimentio suddenly froze. "You don't think that the people who owned this camp are still here, do you-"

"That's not the point! My point is that you have no sense of privacy or empathy, and if you're going to carry on like this, you may as well leave!" Luigi yelled.

"Really?" Dimentio came out and faced him. "You know I won't. I've set my mind to this, and I'm going to stay with you!"

Luigi stared at him. He frowned. "Well, if you are, then you'll have to listen to me. I make the decisions, not you," he said firmly.

"What if your ideas are horrible?" Dimentio asked.

"I- Well, how about this: if any of my 'horrible ideas' kill me, then you can go and do whatever you want," he said, throwing his hands in the air.

"Do you still want to move somewhere else then, decision maker?" Dimentio asked.

"No, we might as well stay here," he answered **,** looking at the darkening sky. "Besides, there's a fire pit. If we get something to light, we could have a fire for the night."

Later that night, the two sat in front of the fire silently. Somehow the peace of the night was a nice juxtaposition to the chaos of the day. The warmth and light of the fire, the billowing smoke as it made its way to the mountain peak.

Luigi had a small smile. "You know what this reminds me of?"

"What?" Dimentio asked.

"The first time Mario and I rescued Peach together. It was scary, even for him. He was still new to this kind of thing too," he laughed softly. "I remember him saying to me, in this hysterical voice, 'This is crazy! I can't believe we're doing this! Why are we doing this?!' and I could only respond with, 'Because, we're the only ones who can!'

"I hardly think about that anymore, but whenever I do, it makes me smile. It reminds me of how far he and I have come **,** " Luigi said with a nostalgic sigh.

Dimentio stared at him. It's hard to imagine Mario being scared of anything. _How long have they been in this whole business of saving people and worlds?_ he thought.

He watched the smoke trail up into the sky, towards the mountain's top...

...Where a small girl in a plague doctor's mask sat watching with magically enhanced vision. She checked her bag of supplies for the tenth time that night. Yes, it would be enough to take down the man in green, but she wasn't sure about the masked man. Where had he come from? Her master had never mentioned him. The demon spy had told her that his name was Dimentio, a name that hadn't reminded her of anything.

She brought her legs up to her chest. Oh, how she longed to be free from this task, free from her wretched master. To throw off her debt and live freely. She envisioned a nice house somewhere green and prosperous...

She shook her head. That would have to wait for a while. Possibly forever.


	3. Chapter 2

The mountain range - nameless on the map, only labeled with "DANGER- MANY DISAPPEARED HERE" - stood tall and somber with its wreath of clouds and snow. It was not a kind place, nor for the faint of heart. Even the shortest pass - the one our heroes intended to take - seemed to be cloaked in cryptic warnings such as "Don't stop here, keep going" and, "Unnatural light - tread with care". Indeed, painful trial and error was the way of travel in these mountains.

"Are you certain this is the best path?" Dimentio asked at the entrance. It was a large, hollowed out circle in the raw stone that narrowed down the way.

"It's the shortest one I could find that still goes south," Luigi answered.

"Oh, okay," Dimentio replied.

They both stared at the cave entrance. An eagle's sharp, distant caw broke the silence.

"We have to go in," Luigi said, just as much to himself as to Dimentio.

"I know," his partner answered. "But I keep getting this feeling from the place. That we're not allowed here."

"So am I," Luigi said with a gulp. "We need to go through, though. Through here, then when we reach Shakalum Village, we'll be nearly to where the map ends. This is the best path."

Dimentio clenched his fists. "Alright, then. Let's do this!"

The floor of the cavern was smooth and slanted upward. Each footstep echoed heavily against the previous silence.

"You know, had this been a music hall, the acoustics would have been astounding," Dimentio said with awe.

"Really? I don't know a lot about music," Luigi responded.

"It's fairly simple, once you learn how to read sheet music," Dimentio said. "I could...teach you sometime, if you'd like."

Luigi laughed. "No, I don't even have any instruments I could play and I can't sing. But, thank you for offering."

"Oh, okay," Dimentio said. _Damn it,_ he thought.

Silence and footsteps took over again.

As they continued down the cavern, natural light was replaced with glowing mushrooms and runes on the wall, possibly written in ink made from the fungi. The runes themselves seemed freshly painted, but just as easily could have been ancient. As the two went on, the same rune pattern seemed to repeat over and over.

At the end of the hallway, there was a semi-circle-shaped door carved into the rock. It moved open with shocking ease.

The next room was bright and sunny and filled with flowers, a great contrast to the previous darkness. The flowers' colors were everything from a pastel yellow to deep purple and smelledsweet. The same runes from the previous room were scratched into this chamber as sunlight tumbled in from a circular hole in the stone, one that seemed unnatural.

"Well, this is different," Dimentio said, stating the obvious.

"Yeah. Let's...keep moving," Luigi said, shaking his head.

"Where's the door, then?" Dimentio asked, rotating in the air.

"What?" Luigi glanced around the room. "That's odd, the map says there should be a path that continues through here- Where are you going?!"

Dimentio looked down from his new position, about four feet in the air. "Up. Why, is there an issue with that?"

"Well... No," Luigi said. "But, why?"

"If there's supposedly a continued path, and there's no door down here, then the rest of the path must be above us!" Dimentio said with a self-satisfied smile.

Luigi stared at him. "Fair enough," he said with a shrug.

He crouched and then jumped, just high enough to grab onto the ledge of the circular hole. He pulled himself onto the ledge, then stumbled into standing. Here, there were more flowers, as well as shrubs, vines, and succulents. All of the plants gently swayed in the chilly wind.

"Wow, I've never seen so many plants on a mountain," Luigi said. "Usually they're barren."

Dimentio teleported beside him. "Yes, it is rather odd. You'd think that the dirt of a mountain would be too hard packed to house life, but yet such things thrive here..." He paused. "Do you have a pen? I want to write that down. It sounds poetic."

"A pen? Heck no," Luigi said. "Let's keep moving."

As they walked, Dimentio floated slightly ahead of Luigi, so he sped up his pace to keep up. Dimentio picked up his pace again. Luigi caught up again. Rinse and repeat.

"Why are you doing that?" Luigi asked, irritated.

"Doing what?" Dimentio asked innocently.

 _Oh. I see what you're doing,_ Luigi thought.

"Oh, nevermind," Luigi said with equal 'innocence'. He broke into a sprint without warning.

"Hey!" Dimentio called after him.

 _Might as well give chase,_ Dimentio thought.

This little race brought them three-quarters of the way through the mountain before Dimentio slammed into Luigi and sent them tumbling down the side of the hill. They were on top of each other all the way down until they stopped at the base of the hill, with Luigi pinning Dimentio. The bright colors of the jester popped against that of the flowers, and the hero's green shined against the sky's clouds and blue. They held eye contact for a long, drawn out moment.

Luigi pulled himself off of Dimentio. "Sorry," he muttered.

"No, I ran into you, it's my fault," Dimentio said.

Awkward silence prevailed.

"You know, I just remembered this trick an old friend of mine showed me," Dimentio said, picking flowers.

"Really? What's that?" Luigi asked.

"Wait and see," Dimentio said. A moment later, he held up a circlet of flowers.

"Okay? It's a flower crown," Luigi said, unimpressed.

"I know. Watch this," Dimentio ordered. He took a deep breath, and released it on the flower crown. The flowers' stems grew as if they were still in the dirt, and twisted together to form an actual crown, one for a king or queen.

"Observe! A literal flower crown!" Dimentio chuckled.

Luigi laughed too. "That's really cool! How'd you do that?"

"Oh, it's magic. My friend taught me it, as I said," Dimentio sighed with nostalgia. "Ah, yes, the Gladesman, he was a good friend..." his expression suddenly soured. "Damn coward, though. Didn't know when to stand up for himself or other people."

He shook his head. "But, he's probably forgotten about me by now, as I should him."

"Y- yeah," Luigi said nervously. "Cool trick, though!"

Dimentio placed the crown on Luigi's head, on top of his hat. "There. If we can't find Peasley, we still have someone to take back to the Beanbean Kingdom!" he joked.

"Oh, ha ha... Yeah," Luigi said.

 _Please don't joke about that,_ he thought. _That's actually starting to feel like a possibility._

Dimentio lied down on the flowers. "I know I've said this before, but your world is just so...peaceful. It's nice," he sighed.

"Definitely. Wouldn't trade it for any other," Luigi agreed.

"You know what makes this place so different from the world where I come from?" Dimentio asked. "It has harmony. There's a balance between good and evil. When someone does something terrible, there's a punishment. There's always someone who's ready to set things right. Where I'm from, only the power-hungry and the bullies win. Anyone who tries to stand up to them is destroyed ruthlessly. Where your world is a symphony full of grace and beauty, mine is a constant fight that no one wins."

"Yes, I guess you're right. About here, anyway," Luigi said. "I had no idea it was that bad, though."

 _No wonder you acted the way you did when we met,_ he thought.

 _No wonder you protect you world as violently as you do_ _,_ Dimentio thought.

"That hill's gonna be a pain to climb back up," Luigi said, trying to change the subject.

"Indeed," Dimentio agreed.

* * *

The two nearly completed the mountain pass before they came to a large circle carved out of the rock, almost like an arena.

"This is marked on the map," Luigi said. "We're almost through, and it's barely noon!"

"And what a shame this is where your journey shall end," an unfamiliar, high-pitched voice hissed.

"Who said that?!" Dimentio demanded.

A figure dropped down from the sky and landed in a dramatic pose, their arms out and tilted, and standing on one foot. They wore a plague doctor's mask with braided pigtails and a simple blue dress, with a small pack on their back.

"'Twas I, the Potion Master!" she declared.

Suddenly, Luigi's memory flashed back to what Liman had told him. _"There was also someone else with them. A leader, I think. They were short, and wore a mask like that of a plague doctor - you know, the ones that look like a birds' beak? - and wore a peasant's dress. That's all I can remember."_

"You! Are you the one behind Prince Peasley's kidnapping?" Luigi demanded.

The Potion Master stood up straight. "Hm? Yes, I stole the prince, but I only work for the one truly behind it," she said. "Also, are you wearing a flower crown over your hat?"

Luigi quickly removed the crown and tossed it to the side. "Sorry," he muttered to Dimentio.

"Who's behind all of this? Why Prince Peasley?" Dimentio interrogated.

"I shall give you one thing: a name. I work for the Ghost King. He despises the man in green, why I may never know." She turned her gaze on Dimentio. "He isn't too fond of those who cheat death, either."

"How did you know about that?" Luigi asked in slight awe. "I haven't told anyone about it-"

"I can just tell," The Potion Master said. "But enough chit-chat! Now, we must engage in combat!" she declared.

She pulled outa bottle of red liquid and threw it at Luigi. He jumped out of the way just in time to see it hit the ground, which fizzled under the liquid.

"Is that acid?" Luigi gasped. "Did you just throw acid at me?!

The Potion Master didn't answer. She pulled a small battle axe out of her pack and ran at him. Dimentio threw a ball of magic at her. The ball hit her mask so hard that it fell off, revealing the child's face. In the brief moment that the Potion Master gaped at the sight of her burned mask on the ground, Luigi noticed that she didn't have a tongue.

"Gah, what happened to you?!" he said in disgust.

The Potion Master glared at him. "You don't need to know!"

"Oh, you're a telepath," Dimentio said. "I guess when you can't physically talk you have to find other methods."

"Sh-Shut up!" she squeaked (or made a telepathic noise equivalent to a squeak, if you want to get pretentious). Tears filled her eyes. "No wonder my master hates you, you're just a couple of bullies!"

Luigi's shoulders sank. "Oh, come on. You attacked us and we didn't even - hey, is it just me, or does this conversation seem familiar?"

"It's not just you," Dimentio said.

"Okay - Hey, where are you running off to!" Luigi shouted at the fleeing Potion Master.

"Fear my wrath!" she shouted as she ran.

Soon, the Potion Master disappeared from sight.

"Huh. Guess this whole 'Ghost King' figure is all talk," Dimentio said. "So far, nothing's really been a challenge."

"But doesn't that seem a bit suspicious?" Luigi asked. "You'd think by now we'd have faced more than two enemies-"

The ground shook violently and loudly. The sky went dark as the Potion Master's cackling rang out over the noise.

"What's going on?" Dimentio looked around. "Why is it dark? And what is she laughing about?"

"Oh, no... Dimentio, look behind you," Luigi said with wide eyes.

"What's-" Dimentio turned around. Behind him was a giant man made out of the mountain's rock. On his body were the runes the two had seen before, but now they glowed green. The mountain man gripped a large hammer made of the same rock. On his shoulder was the Potion Master.

"Did you think I wouldn't have a back-up plan?!" she cried. "Aha! Who's 'all talk' now?!"

Dimentio's shoulder's drooped and his jaw went slack. "Ah... It-It seems I've made a slight miscalculation of our enemy's strength," he said weakly. "Should we try and face it?"

"No. Dimentio, there are many times in which you stand and fight, but this is the time to be smart instead of brave," Luigi said with surprising calmness. "Now run!"

Luigi grabbed Dimentio's hand, and ran like the wind. _Wow, he's light!_ he thought, practically dragging his partner along.

"Kill them, lithic monstrosity!" The Potion Master commanded. She burst into another fit of cackles. "Use your hammer of might!"

The mountain man raised his hammer with both hands, then swung it down, underhand. The blow hit both Luigi and Dimentio and sent them flying high into the air, knocked out of each other's grasp.

"Dimentio!" Luigi cried as his partner was sent far ahead of him, screaming.

Luigi was helpless as his body soared higher and higher in the air. He passed through the damp and dusty clouds and into the skies, light headed and dizzy. Then, for a brief moment, he was suspended at the peak of his ascent, not falling or rising. Then, gravity remembered its place in the world and brought him down again, towards the ground.

 _Oh, god, I knew I was going to die, this is exactly what I should have expected, what else but acid throwing children and moving mountains, I mean, that isn't even the weirdest thing I've ever seen, I wonder if rolling when I land would help me_ _,_ he thought with his mind racing.

The question of whether or not rolling when one hit the ground would help them survive a fall from over a mile high was not to be answered, because Luigi did not roll when he landed. Instead, he landed face down and with a cloud of sand rising over him from the impact.

 _If I don't move,_ he thought, _I don't have to know how many bones I just broke._

"Mister, are you okay?"

Luigi slowly looked up, trying to move as little as possible. A small Toad girl stood over him, clutching a doll. "You fell from the sky," she said with concern.

"Uh..." Luigi stared at her, unsure what to say. "Where am I?"

"Shakalum," the girl answered, pointing to a small group of buildings not far off. "Did you fall from Heaven? Are you an angel-"

"Shakalum?!" Luigi exclaimed, nearly jumping to his feet. "That's just where I need to be! I need to tell Dimentio- Wait, where is he?"

As if on a cue, Dimentio teleported next to him, covered in sand. "I think I'm beginning to hate sand," he said.

"Dimentio, we're in Shakalum!" Luigi interrupted, shaking Dimentio's shoulders. "Do you know what that means?!"

"Are you listening to me-?"

"We're exactly where we wanted to go! It's a miracle!" He jumped with joy. "That stupid mountain smacked us over here! It would have taken us days, maybe weeks to cross this hot, desert wasteland-" he motioned to the featureless biome, "but we made it in less than a minute!" He laughed out loud. "Screw you, mountain man! And screw you, Potion Master! I'm gonna save Peasley, kill the Ghost King and I'm gonna be a hero, just like my big brother!"

He stopped suddenly. "Uh, did I say that last part out loud?" he asked, embarrassed.

Dimentio nodded solemnly. "Also, people are starting to stare at us," he said, pointing at the growing group of concerned toads.

"Mama!" the small toad girl squealed. "They're angels, and they fell from Heaven!"

The Potion Master climbed down the now deanimated mountain. That hit should have killed those two idiots, she was certain. And yet... She wasn't quite sure about anything anymore. Why did her master want that man dead? She had made a mental image of some kind of mad scientist, bent on world destruction. But, he seemed more like a nervous, yet righteous hero who liked to wear flower crowns over his hat.

The flower crown. She saw it on the ground and scooped it up. It hadn't wilted at all, and was most likely enchanted. Just looking at it reminded her of warm summer days with her parents-

Tears welled up in her eyes as she pushed the thought out of her mind. She considered throwing the little crown away. It was useless, a trinket for kids. Yeah, for kids.

 _Oh, what the hell,_ she thought, placing the crown atop her head. A small smile crept over her freckled face. _Hey, maybe I could be the Ghost King!_ She joked to herself. _Yes, I could rule over the restless dead! Aha, ha ha!_

"What are you wearing?"

The Potion Master whipped her head around. The demon spy was staring at her quizzically with his cat-like eyes.

"Oh, hello, Clarence," she grumbled. "What do you want?"

"It's not what I want, it's what the Master wants," he said, sounding bored. "You see, I saw that little fight, and it turns out that the man in green and his mysterious friend aren't in fact dead. Actually, they're better than ever. All you did was send them closer to our base."

"What?! But that should have been enough force to kill them by itself, let alone the impact when they hit the ground!"

"Mmhm. Well, you might as well not come back, considering the amount of shame you've just caused yourself," he said with a shrug.

"B-but I need to go back! Otherwise, he won't give me back my speech-"

"You're a smart girl. Figure it out yourself," Clarence said harshly. "As for myself, I'm going back to base to give my report. Good luck." He evaporated into thin air.

For a moment, The Potion Master stood there, unsure of what to do. Then, red hot rage filled her veins. _Fine. I won't go back, but I might help someone else to do just that,_ she thought. _Luigi, Dimentio, you've just made a very powerful friend._


	4. Chapter 3

Peasley was abruptly awoken by a shrill yell; "He's still alive?!"

"Y-Yes, my master. The Potion Master failed to eliminate them," said an unfamiliar voice. "In fact-"

"Then why didn't you do anything?" shrieked the first voice, the same one from when Peasley had awoken earlier. "Wait, did you just say 'them'? Has he brought someone else with him?!"

"Um, yes, but not really of his own volition! The other person just kind of joined him," the second voice stammered.

"May I appeal on Clarence's behalf, my master?" said the feminine voice from before.

"...Fine, say what you want," said the shrill voice.

"You have said yourself that you wanted to be the one to make the final blow to your enemy. Perhaps Clarence was keeping that in the back of his mind?" she suggested.

For a long moment, no one spoke. Then, the shrill voice said, "That would be acceptable."

"Oh, yes, that was my motivation, my master! Of course, yes, why wouldn't it be?" the voice named Clarence said quickly.

"Well, that's reasonable enough. But, next time... KILL THEM!" the voice shrieked.

"Y-Yes, sir!" Clarence quailed. "Anything you say!"

"Xylantha," the shrill voice said.

"Yes?" the female voice answered.

"You still have the infected beings standing in their way, don't you?"

There was a long, near tangible pause. Then Xylantha answered, "Yes, my master."

"Good. I'm going to attend to some other business. Get back to work, Clarence," the shrill voice ordered.

There was another long pause. "You think he's out of hearing range?" Clarence asked.

"Yes, I can't sense him," Xylantha answered. "Are you really scared of him?"

"Yes! Have you seen what he can do to a person? Not only that, but that big, gaping maw..."

"I lied to him," Xylantha interrupted. "All of the infected? They're dead. I checked earlier. They've all dropped."

"What?!" Clarence gasped. "Then we don't have nearly enough time! We need to stall, somehow. Do you have any ideas?"

"We could kill them ourselves," Xylantha suggested.

"That's not an option! Listen, I haven't seen those two fight a lot, but I get the feeling they're more powerful than they look. The green one, Luigi, he built a machine that can turn lightning to fire!"

 _Luigi?!_ Peasley thought, his heart skipping a beat. _What do they want with him? Why does my captor want him dead?_

"Not only that, but he has with him a powerful magician, named Dimentio-"

"Dimentio?!" Xylantha interrupted. "Wait, was this man wearing a mask and some gaudy purple and yellow outfit?"

"Yes, do you know him or something?" Clarence asked impatiently.

"Well, yes, but I thought he died over two years ago! What the hell is he doing here...?" she wondered.

 _Dimentio, wasn't that the name of that ghost that was haunting Luigi a few months ago?_ Peasley thought. _I guess he's alive... But why is he accompanying Luigi instead of Mario, or someone more trustworthy? And how does this 'Xylantha' fit into his backstory?_

"I don't know, and I don't honestly care. This whole charade has been very emotionally taxing for me, so I need some time alone," Clarence said. "Goodbye."

"Bye, coward," Xylantha said.

After a long silence, Peasley heard the sound of heels clicking away from him.

 _So, I've learned some names and not much else. I still don't know where I am, or why I'm here. If anything, I'm more confused than before,_ he thought, frustrating himself. It seems that those two are both double agents of some kind, with the mentions of some 'charade' and stalling. But why, why, why?!

Peasley groaned with exhaustion of his own thoughts. The drowsiness from before had been lifted, so he couldn't fall back asleep. He sat there, staring out at the darkness, waiting...

* * *

Luigi stared at the dark ceiling of the small room he was in. Luckily, the people of Shakalum were understanding of his and Dimentio's quest, and had even given them an updated map that reached farther south, and marked a place where they thought Peasley might have been taken to. Though the town was rather off-putting - there was a gallows (-pole-) in plain sight, yikes - the people seemed nice enough.

He and Dimentio were staying at the town's small hotel for the night, taking advantage of the hospitality. The room was small, but it was only for the night. At least it had two separate beds. Luigi had to awkwardly explain that he and Dimentio were 'just friends' at least three times to different people.

"Hey, Luigi," Dimentio whispered. "Are you awake?"

"Um, yeah," Luigi said. "You don't have to whisper. It's not like anyone else is here."

"Alright. I...wanted to tell you something," he said with an unfamiliar quaver in his voice.

"Yeah? What is it?"

"I... I think I...love...you?" he said in a decrescendo.

"Oh," Luigi said quietly. His face burned, and he was glad it was dark. He didn't look at Dimentio. "That's...nice, I guess."

Dead, tangible silence hung in the air.

"Is that it?" Dimentio asked with a mix of menace and disappointment.

"Well, I already have a boyfriend," Luigi said.

"That you've had for all of three months and may be dead," Dimentio spat.

Luigi shot up and glared at Dimentio. "Oh, that is it! Get out, go home, and don't come back!" he ordered.

Dimentio rose to meet him. The corner of his mouth was twitching. "Is that going to be your response to everything?" he growled.

"If you love me so much, just go! It will make things much easier for both of us," Luigi said, ignoring the prior statement.

"No, no it won't-"

"I honestly, truly do not care about what you have to say," Luigi with exhaustion. "I have dealt with so much of your bullshit, and I want to be alone, okay? I don't really care where you go, just leave."

Dimentio stared at him for a moment, then said, "Fine. I guess I'll see you later some time. Good luck." He teleported away without another word.

Luigi sat alone in the darkness of night. He crossed his arms and huffed. _Well, he's gone, he thought. I wonder if I made the right choice, though?_

* * *

The next morning, Luigi set out into the desert wasteland that surrounded Shakalum. The air was about as dry as you'd expect it to be, and carried a sense of foreboding much harder to bear than the heat.

His updated map marked a place to the Southeast that was supposedly the Ghost King's lair, made clear with a large red circle surrounded by question marks, made in what seemed to be marker. The village people said that children who went there never came back, and the adults that did were often driven insane by what they had seen. So, not a very fun place to be.

As he trudged through the arid dunes, he saw a figure in the distance, silhouetted by the harsh light. _Is that a mirage, or is it real?_ he wondered, staring at it from afar.

Soon, he was close enough to see something descriptive about them. She was clearly a woman and wore a flowing lavender cloak over a black dress with small heels. Her hair was tied in a bun at the top of her head. She walked with a cane that had a golden, angular handle, or at least held it on her person; he hadn't seen her walking. She just stood there.

Eventually he stood only a few yards away from her. She had a face of calm patience.

"Are you lost?" Luigi asked as a slight breeze began.

"No," she said in a lilting voice. "Are you?"

"No, I have a map," he held it up for her to see. "Uh... No offense, but what's a nicely-dressed woman like you-"

She threw a sword from inside her cloak into the sand inches in front of him. "Look familiar?" she asked with a smirk.

Luigi got over his shock and looked closely at the sword. It was Peasley's rapier. "H-How do you have this?" he demanded. The wind grew stronger, blowing the woman's cloak aside in its wake.

She laughed indulgently. "How do you think?"

"Are you behind Prince Peasley's kidnapping?" he growled.

"...In a way. Have you noticed the creatures walking around with black splotches on their skin and yellow eyes?" She tilted her head slightly.

"Yeah, but not a lot of them," Luigi said. "Most of them-"

"Have died by now, yes, I know." She looked embarrassed. "I made a miscalculation of how long they would survive in this new envoirnment. Turns out, with the lack of proper life energy here, they die much faster." She paused, her mouth slightly open. "Did you not have a companion before? A fellow in purple and yellow?"

"Dimentio? Yeah, he left. Funny, he thought only one person could control those things," he said.

She smirked again, wider than before. Her teeth were sharp, like a cat's. "Oh, that's true. I _am_ that person. My name is Xylantha, Queen of the Parasites."

"That's... kinda gross," Luigi said. He shook his head. "Where's Peasley?! Is he alive?"

"Don't worry, he's alive and well. He was actually asleep for most of the two weeks we've had him here. Unfortunately, the Potion Master went a tad heavy on the narcotics," she explained calmly. (

"Then, what do you want from me? You haven't attacked me...yet," Luigi said.

"I have a simple request: Slow down." She laughed nervously. "Now that I say that out loud, that sounds a little odd, but bear with me! Clarence and I-"

"Wait, who's Clarence?"

Xylantha's eyebrows raised. "I thought you had already encountered him, or at least saw him. The spy?"

"His name is Clarence?" Luigi asked. "I mean, the way he looked, I thought he'd at least have a cool title like 'The Shadow Walker', or maybe at least 'The Dark Spy'."

"I'm right here, you know!" said Clarence (apparently), appearing behind Luigi in a puff of smoke. He wore a tight, all black outfit and a domino mask. His blonde hair struck a stark contrast.

Xylantha rolled her eyes. "No, he's just Clarence. Though, our boss does call him a 'demon spy', but he isn't actually a demon. Anyways..." She shook her head. "Clarence and I need you to slown down your pace a bit."

Luigi crossed his arms. "Why should I? What's in it for me?"

Xylantha's mouth opened slightly. "I... Uh..."

"We'll kill you otherwise," Clarence cut in. "You're nothing without Dimentio-"

Clarence was interrupted by a fist to the face and an elbow to the back of the neck. He fell onto his face, groaning in pain.

"You were saying?" Luigi said dryly.

"You'll have to excuse my comrade. He likes to think he's stronger than he actually is." She rubbed the bridge of her nose. "I guess there really is nothing about this you would like, and I'm not too fond of the whole 'or we'll kill you' plan either." She shrugged. "Just...consider it, okay?"

"Not likely, but okay. Why, though?" Luigi asked.

"There are some things you are not yet meant to know," she thundered.

"Yikes, okay!" Luigi said. "Calm down, jeez..."

"I have to leave. Please, as I said, consider it. You might find it better if you come later, anyway," Xylantha said. She turned around and walked off, tapping her cane against the sand occasionally.

The wind was howling now, to the point where sand was thrown around carelessly. Luigi shielded his eyes from the sand with the brim of his hat and thought, _Who the heck does she think she is?_

* * *

Luigi tried to advance, but found it was incredibly difficult with the sandstorm raining down. He could hardly tell where he was going, and the wind battered his body without mercy. At the same time, he couldn't stop because there was no shelter from the storm, or at least none that he could see. Thus encumbered, he was forced to soldier on.

He couldn't help thinking about what Dimentio would say or do about the situation. He'd probably say something like, "I would teleport, but it's not as if I could take you with me, so I won't," or just complain about sand getting in his mouth again. He chuckled to himself, then felt his face burn up. _Ugh, why am I thinking about that creep again? He was just trouble anyways..._

 _Or was he? He did kill that infected Koopa, and knocked off the Potion Master's mask,_ he thought. Guilt twisted his stomach. _God, I'm an idiot. This is why no one trusts me with anything._

Just as Luigi thought that, he felt something tug at one of the legs on his overalls. He glanced down and saw a small, familiar face look up at him: braided pigtails, eyes constantly burning with rage.

"Ack! Get off me you-you weird gremlin child!" Luigi awkwardly kicked the Potion Master away from him. "What do you want from me?!"

"I want you to take me back to the Ghost King's mansion!" she said, holding her hands above her head. "Listen, we don't need to fight! I actually want to help you out."

Luigi stared at her. "How could you help me? You're, like, eight years old," he said critically.

"I found a place to wait out the sandstorm," she said.

Luigi's eyes narrowed. "Fine. But, the second you betray me, all bets are off."

Luigi found himself in a small cave formed from a huge, hollowed-out boulder, sitting with the Potion Master in the dark.

"So... Where's your boyfriend?" she asked, tapping her fingers against her knee.

"What? You mean Prince Peasley? I thought he was-"

"No, not him. Uh, what was his name...? Oh, right, Dimentio! You were holding hands and such with him, so I thought he was..." She noticed the intense glare Luigi was giving her. "Oh, I guess not, huh?"

"No. And when did I hold hands with him?" he asked with arms folded.

"When I had animated the mountain and it was about to hit you, you grabbed his hand," she explained. "I thought it was pretty romantic."

"Listen, the guy not only tried to kill me, but also brainwashed me - for the second time in one week, mind you, - and haunted me as a ghost for three months. I don't know how he got it in his head that I would at all consider him when I already have a boyfriend who treats me extremely well, and, for the record, he's not even that hot! I mean, he's not bad looking, but the whole mask thing is kinda weird-" He stopped himself. He felt his face get red. "Um... I mean..."

The Potion Master stared at him, blinking slowly. "Um, indeed. Even I'm embarrassed by that," she said.

"You can never tell anyone we had this conversation," he said quietly.

She made a zipping motion over her lips. "You got it," she said.

Luigi glanced around the small cave. "So, uh, I have a weird question-"

"Is it about the whole 'not-having-a-tongue' thing?" the Potion Master asked dryly.

"No, no! Maybe. Yes," Luigi said, tugging slightly on the brim of his hat. "It's just that, well, most kids your age aren't telepaths and as good at magic as you, so... I'm a Little weirded out."

"Well, it's a very simple story," she said. "A few years ago, my parents died." she paused. Luigi motioned for her to continue. "Which was terrible on its own, but they decided to haunt me and try and get me to send their souls to rest. And, I did! Or, at least I tried to. I searched around for anyone who could help me, and ended up meeting with the- Oh, screw it, I might as well call him by his name. I ended up meeting King Boo-"

"Oh, that's who's behind all of this?" Luigi said. "But why would he- Oh, sorry, continue your story."

"It's fine. He cut me a deal: he would help me if I worked under him for a few years, and took my voice as collateral. Up until yesterday, I was totally devoted to him. But then, something happened, and I realized that if I didn't take action, I'd always be someone's lackey! So, I wanted to help you take him down and take back my voice!" she grinned at him. Then her face fell. "Are you... Okay?"

"Me? Oh, yeah! I'm great..." he laughed nervously. He wasn't sure whether or not he wanted to tell the poor kid that you can't remove an organ and take it as collateral, then somehow give it back. It also disgusted him (but didn't surprise him) that King Boo had tricked a small child into working for him.

"So, what's with King Boo? Why's he on this whole 'kidnap my boyfriend so he can kill me' campaign?" he asked. "And, why can't he get his Boo's to do it?"

The Potion Master shrugged. "Once I heard him muttering about how his 'former subjects' had left him because they had, more than once, been in peril due to his poor decision making."

"So, he hired a bunch of crazy, magic people to do his dirty work... I see. None of you are very loyal, though, are you?" he said.

"I don't know. Clarence, the spy, he's pretty loyal. Told me himself that it would be better if I didn't come back..." she said with a hint of bitterness.

"Actually, from what little interaction I've had with him and Xylantha, I get the feeling they're both double agents," Luigi said. He shrugged. "I don't know. You know more about this than I do."

"Not really, I've been kept in the dark about most of this entire situation," she said. "Almost literally. It's always so dark and cold there, even though it's in the middle of the desert."

"I'm not surprised. He can't stand the light," Luigi said. "Speaking of, the storm's clearing up. How far do you think we are from the mansion?"

"Less than a day's trip, if the weather stays good," the Potion Master said optimistically.

"Really?! Then what are we still doing here?" Luigi shot to his feet.

He hefted his suit case and was about to depart when the Potion Master grabbed his arm.

"Yes?" he asked patiently.

"Don't go too fast, please. It took me long enough to catch up to you in the first place," she said.

"Oh, okay. Let's go!"

The two set off into the desert with an eager desire to defeat their undead antagonist. Soon, all of this will be worth it, they both thought to themselves. Though it meant different things for both of them, it bonded them in a way.

And, for a moment, Luigi remembered Dimentio and wondered how he was. He shook his head. That didn't matter. At least, it shouldn't have


	5. Finale

A large, black cloud funneled out from the top of King Boo's current residence, protecting it from the harsh desert sunlight. This anomaly in the weather was visible from a long distance, popping out against the barren landscape. It stretched out for at least a mile; everything and everyone it covered became chilled to the point of shivering and turning black.

"So, this is his solution to the constant light?" Luigi asked rhetorically, once they were under the cloud. He whistled. "Impressive, almost."

"Why the 'almost'?" the Potion Master asked.

"Because... Do you want the long answer or the short answer?"

"Uh, nevermind," she shook her head.

"Alright then." He set his suitcase down and rooted through it. "Well, since we can't just drag the guy out to the light, we'll have to make our own!"

Luigi pulled from the suitcase his "L-Brand Transference Gloves" and put them on. He let out a small test flame from the palm of his hand. _Good, they still work after being stabbed, like, seventeen times,_ he thought.

Luigi lit a small flame to guide their way, and advanced with the Potion Master not far behind. The small light cast odd shadows around the dark place, making the atmosphere all the more eerie.

"So, why does King Boo want you dead so much? It doesn't make a lot of sense to me," the Potion Master asked, attempting to make conversation.

"Well... For some reason, a while ago he decided it was a good idea to trap my brother in a painting..." He paused at the puzzled glance he got from the Potion Master. "Yeah, I know, it's weird. I got help from this scientist named Professor E. Gadd to get him free and defeat King Boo, plus his lackeys at the time, but he didn't seem to think that harassing me once was enough. He tried to get these pieces of something called the Dark Moon, but, once again, that didn't end well for him." He shrugged. "I guess he's just stubborn."

The Potion Master tilted her head. "You have a brother?" she asked.

 _Ugh, why did you have to ask?_ Luigi thought. "Yeah..."

"Oh, do you have a bad relationship with him or something?" she asked with sympathy.

Luigi sighed. "No, he's a great guy, believe me! He's kind, he's smart and keeps a cool head. Well... It's just that, whenever I mention him, everyone always compares me to him, and it makes me feel really small."

They walked in tense silence for a moment.

"H-hey, I think I see the mansion in the distance! We're almost there!" the Potion Master said excitedly.

Luigi didn't respond.

* * *

The mansion, unlike a proper place of villainous residence, did not stand tall, proud, or menacingly. It seemed to labor just to keep from collapsing in on itself. The wood was rotted, nearly every glass window was smashed, and weeds gnawed on the cornerstones. However, out of all of this, the most noticeable thing was the winding black tempest that seemed to grow from the weakchimney at the top.

"This is the place?" Luigi asked, speaking for the first time in a while.

"Yes, this is it," the Potion Master responded.

"It's kinda...sad," he said. "I mean, his old place at least looked like it had some life to it, but this is just...pathetic."

"A little, yes..." she admitted, pushing a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

Luigi shut the fire from his gloves off and gently pushed the door open. Part of it came off on his fingertips as moist residue. _Oh, that's just disgusting,_ he thought, his face screwing up instantly.

The inside of the place was even worse. If not for the shade of the cloud overhead, all of the inner walls would have disintegrated by now, but instead they had come apart only halfway, making a crazed maze of wallpaper and moist plaster. What might have been carpet before was now merely a thick layer of fuzz atop of a thin wood base. The smell of mildew was stark andunmistakable. Once again, something stood apart in stark contrast from the rest: a large, metal wall with steel doors stood in the middle of the house, blocking the middle of the house off.

When Luigi tried the door, it was locked. "Don't worry," the Potion Master said, digging through the pockets on her dress. "King Boo gave me a key, just in case I got locked out. Oh, and be prepared. It's gonna look a lot different on the inside."

"Gotcha," Luigi said with a nod.

The Potion Master pulled a tiny key from her pocket and slid it into the key hole. It turned smoothly, and was out a second later. She gave Luigi a quick glance before pulling the door open.

Luigi wasn't sure what he was expecting, but it sure wasn't what he saw. Behind the door was an entrance hall that seemed to be ripped from Bowser's castle, only it was ten times as luxurious. The floor and walls were obsidian with deep purple carpets lined with gold thread. The hallway lead to another enormous door adorned with a giant painting of King Boo. Soft piano music played from a distance.

"What...the...?" Luigi murmured as he took in his surroundings. "When did... How...?"

"I'm just as baffled as you. The place changes with his moods, but there's one constant: how to get to his quarters, which is where he's keeping your prince," she explained. "I get the feeling he's trying to intimidate you."

"No shit- I mean, yeah, definitely," he murmured with a swift shake of his head.

"Heard that," she said shamelessly.

At the end of the long hallway, Luigi hesitated in opening the door. The large painting hanging on the door looked like it was ready to pop open and release the monster upon them right then and there. He swallowed, and quickly opened the door. When nothing happened, he motioned for his small partner to continue along with him.

The next room was equally lavish, and had two winding staircases: one to the east leading up, the other to the west heading down. To the north was a door labeled: "Do Not Enter" in fine cursive. Behind them, the large door slammed shut.

The Potion Master smacked her palm to her forehead. "Ugh, I forgot, the soldiers from the Beanbean Kingdom... Listen, we can either get the Beanish people free from the basement before or after we rescue your prince, but not at the same time. They're on opposite ends of the... Uh, can't really call it a mansion at this point... Castle?"

"Oh, they're alive? That's good, but I wonder..." Luigi said, then took a deep breath. "Potion Master, could you do a huge favor for me?"

"Yes?"

"Could you... Could you help the Beanish soldiers so I can face King Boo?" he asked, making direct eye contact with her.

There was a long silence. Many emotions passed on the Potion Master's face. Indignation, rage, sorrow, humility, then cold determination. "Yes, I will," she said. Then, unexpectedly, she grabbed his hand. "Good luck, Luigi. You'll need it."

The Potion Master then ran down the stairs and out of sight.

 _Yeah, I'll definitely need it_ , Luigi thought with a shiver. With a pit in his stomach, he ascended the opposite stairs.

At the top of the stairs was a plain, wooden door with a small amount of light coming out from under it. After dropping his suitcase by the door he entered the room slowly, carefully.

This room was definitely the source of the piano music, as there was a grand piano sitting in the dark room, playing by itself. This wasn't very out of place in the ghostly environment. The only light in the room came from a fireplace at the far end of the room.

"King Boo! Are you here? I know you're behind this, so come out and face me!" Luigi yelled. His voice echoed for a few moments.

"Luigi?! Is that you down there?" Luigi heard Peasley cry from above.

Luigi looked up and saw Peasley dangling from a rope that was tied several times around his arms and torso. He kicked uselessly, making the rope swing back and forth precariously.

"Peasley!" Luigi called, grinning. "Hold on, I-I'll get you down as quick as I can!"

Just as he was thinking about how to rescue his prince, a dramatic ring of blue fire lit around Luigi. Shrill laughter filled the room as the temperature fell drastically.

"You idiot!" the shrill voice called. "You fell right into my perfect little trap!"

Luigi looked around, flames curling from his gloves. "Where are you?!" he demanded.

The smoke from the blue fire started to curl towards one common direction: right in front of Luigi. It quickly formed an orb that small stubs of arms grew from, and a face appeared in. A bright light on top of the orb formed a crown, finishing the picture: King Boo, in all of his horribleness.

"Right here!" he shrieked.

Immediately, Luigi shot fire at his opponent. The fire went straight through the ghost, who turned invisible and flew through Luigi. The hero's body seized up, but otherwise he was fine. Or so he thought, until he realized that he couldn't move his fingers. The gauntlets were malfunctioning and starting to spark and smoke.

"Oh, shit!" Luigi cursed and threw the gauntlets on the ground. They promptly exploded.

"Hah! Where are you now, without your fancy science gloves?" King Boo demanded.

"My... My hard work..." Luigi said softly. He felt himself tear up a little bit. He whipped his head around and pointed at King Boo. "I'll kill you again, you monster!"

* * *

The Potion Master, for the tenth time, shoved the key into the lock on the dungeon cell. It wouldn't turn. "Ugh! It just won't go!" she groaned to one of the captive soldiers.

"Maybe you could get one of our spears and break the lock?" he suggested.

"I tried to get your spears beforehand, but that door wouldn't open either! It's like the locks..." She smacked her palm against her face again. "He changed the damn locks."

"Well, perhaps I could help you?" said a voice from the darkness.

Dimentio popped into view, grinning slyly. He held a silver key in his hand.

"You! How- When did you get here?!" the Potion Master demanded. "I thought Luigi made you go home, or something!"

"Wait, who's he? Was he with Luigi?" one of the Beanish soldiers asked.

"Well, yes, he told me to go home, but I didn't exactly listen to him, you see. I don't take kindly to orders," he explained. "Where is he, by the way?"

"Fighting King Boo," she answered. "Uh, the Ghost King, to clarify. Luigi and I made an alliance." Her eyes narrowed. "Hold on, where'd you get that key? I thought that-"

"WHERE ARE YOU, YOU DAMN THIEF?!" yelled Xylantha from upstairs.

"Oh my god, of all people, you took her key? Come on, you could have taken Clarence's, he's a big wuss!"

"Oh, you'll see why in a moment," Dimentio said with a smug grin. "For now, take this." He tossed the Potion Master the key and turned invisible.

Xylantha sailed down the stairs, hardly using her cane. "Y- You!" she panted, waving her cane at the Potion Master. "You sneaky, conniving...child! I thought you left!"

The Potion Master stared at her, her mouth slightly agape. She sent a telepathic message strictly to Dimentio: " _This would be a great time to come out, you know..._ "

"Don't play dumb with me! I tried to defend you from being overworked, I cared about you, and this is how you pay me back?" Xylantha demanded.

"I'm sorry, I'm very confused," one of the Beanish soldiers said. "What in the world are you talking about?"

Xylantha glared at him. "You! You're not involved this! Shut up!"

"Well, that's not very kind of you," Dimentio said, appearing from the shadows, surprising no one but Xylantha.

"Dimentio? You're...alive?" she asked with soft disbelief. She suddenly grinned, picked Dimentio up, and swung him around. "Oh, it's so good to see you!"

"Ack! Put me down! This is embarrassing!" Dimentio protested. Evidently, this wasn't what he had in mind.

While this was happening, the Potion Master unlocked the cells containing the Beanish soldiers. She didn't paticularly care about Xylantha or Dimentio, seeing as they both seemed to beambivalent to her.

Xylantha dropped Dimentio back down and sighed. "Where have you been? I thought you were dead!"

"We can talk later," Dimentio said. "Right now, I need you to help me out."

"If by 'help you out', you mean kick King Boo's ass, I'm all in," she said. At Dimentio's puzzled face, she continued, "Like you said, we'll talk later. I'm sure we both have a lot of questions."

* * *

For the third time in the last few seconds, Luigi was thrown to the ground. With shaking knees, he rose up again. Before he could make another move, he was raised into the air by King Boo with a simple raise of the ghost king's arm.

Unlike before, King Boo laughed and said, "You know, this is way more fun than I thought it would be!"

"You're a sick bastard!" Peasley yelled from above.

"Oh, shut up, you. You were just bait, and frankly, I'm shocked you've survived so far," the ghost king said, then shrugged. "You know, this kind of gives me an idea. At first I was just going to kill you, Luigi, and torture you as a ghost until I got bored." He then motioned to Peasley. "And toss _your_ useless body into the desert. But now, I'm thinking, why stop here? I mean sure, the Boos left me because they thought I was insane, but I'm good enough on my own! Besides, there's the Parasite Queen and my little demon spy-"

"You...dumbass..." Luigi choked. "They don't care about you or your cause... Hell, Clarence isn't even actually a demon! How could you not tell that already? Real demons are like, pink and wear business suits. I'm pretty sure it's pronounced 'D-man', too-"

King Boo strengthened his vice grip on Luigi, making him gag. "Silence! Do you know what you did to me?" he screeched. "After you defeated me for a second time, they decided I wasn't worthy to rule anyone, and all of the Boos left me for some loser named Lady Bow - I think that was what they said - and sent me far from my home! I had to wander this wasteland until I couldfind someplace where the heat wasn't so excruciating and make this storm cloud."

"Oh, like you didn't deserve it!" Prince Peasley yelled from above. "You're a horrible person!"

For a second, while the King's concentration was broken, Luigi felt the incorporeal grip around his body loosen. In that instant, he gave a quick nod to Peasley as if to say, Keep him distracted!

Peasley caught his nod. "Not-Not only that, but you're a coward! If you had any real sense of how to rule, you would have taken control of your people; though they had a very good reason to not like you. I mean, if I were a ghost, I would already be unhappy, but with your bad attitude and poor decision making, I'd revolt too."

"You know nothing of governing the dead!" King Boo hissed. "It's much more complicated than meets the eye-"

"Oh, sure it is. But I hardly believe that people's core desires change when they become a ghost," Peasley paused. "And you know what? On the previous subject of loyalty, you did a piss poor job on that, too! Your current subjects aren't loyal to you at all! If you don't take Luigi's word for it, I heard them talking behind your back. Xylania- I mean, Xylantha lied to you about the 'infected beings'. They died! All of them! Not only that, but she thinks that Clarence shouldn't be afraid of you. No one should, really-"

"Silence! Shut your mouth!" King Boo screamed and slammed Luigi against the ground multiple times in frustration. A mad grin spread over the king's face. "You-You thought you could distract me, or something like that? That will never work! I have a will of iron!" He burst into crazed laughter.

"Wow, you're- You're worse than I thought..." Luigi coughed, barely seeing out of a new black eye. "Not only obsessive, but crazy, too!"

King Boo shrieked to beat an upset child and dropped Luigi unceremoniously onto the ground. Luigi slammed his hands over his ears and groaned.

 _Wait, I can move!_ he realized. He grinned slyly and raised a shaking hand to aim. Just a few shots of lightning should do him in...

King Boo suddenly noticed his mistake. "Wait, no!" he shrieked.

One flash.

Two.

Three. After the blinding light faded, only King Boo's crown, lying on the ground, remained.

"You know, if I had thought it was as easy as that, I wouldn't have followed you."

Luigi turned his head, still lying on the ground. Dimentio was casually leaning on the wooden door frame.

"The heck are you doing here?" Luigi asked, then coughed.

Dimentio shrugged. "I figured I would bust in and dramatically save you at the last second, but I thought it would be way more fun to watch you get beat up."

"Luigi?" Peasley called from above. "Who's that?"

"Oh, this is, uh," Luigi struggled to his feet. Dimentio teleported over to support him. "Dimentio. You know, the ghost?"

"Oh, huh. Speaking of ghosts, where's King Boo?"

Luigi glanced around. "Huh. He kinda, I dunno, faded into nothing after that third shock." He shrugged. "Now, how am I gonna get you down from there...?" He glanced at Dimentio. "I mean, it's not like I can, I don't know, fly or something."

Dimentio frowned at him. Luigi grinned weakly. "You can't make me do anything, you know," Dimentio muttered.

"Yes, but I can ask you very politely, and know that you'll probably do it," Luigi said, still grinning.

"That's not true at all."

"Hey, prove me wrong."

"Oh, many thanks, Miss, uh-" Peasley started.

"Xylantha."

Dimentio and Luigi both snapped their heads to see Xylantha carefully lowering Peasley to the ground with psychokinesis. The rope had been cut by something. Luigi noticed that Xylantha's staff had a blade at the end of it.

"That woman! Hey, get away from him!" Luigi yelled, baring his fists.

Before he could run over and get in another fight, Dimentio caught him by the collar. "Don't worry, we're old friends."

"Oh, so you do know her, and she wasn't just lying to intimidate me - which, of course, wouldn't have worked at all, mind you - that's good." Luigi gave Dimentio a suspicious look. "Why didn't you want to talk about her, then?"

Dimentio ground his teeth. "Because she's...embarrassing."

"How so?"

"Dimentio, is Prince Peasley your friend?" Xylantha asked, walking over with the prince. "I mean, you could have just said that from the get-go, and I would have-"

"Actually, I don't really know him all that well," Dimentio said hastily. "Not to change the subject so suddenly, how are you here? I mean, we're many light years from where you live."

Xylantha sighed. "Let me show you." She and Dimentio walked off.

"Wait, what are you two even talking about?!" Luigi asked, calling ineffectively after them.

Peasley suddenly embraced Luigi tightly. "Luigi, you defeated King Boo and saved me!" He kissed Luigi soundly on the lips.

"Oh... No-No problem..." Luigi said weakly, blushing bright red.

"You like that?" Peasley whispered in his ear. "Then you can guess what I'm gonna do to you when we get a moment alone..."

" _Uh, should I come back or...?_ "

Luigi glanced down at the Potion Master. " _I, um, did you guys a favor and sent those_ _soldier_ _guys back home, you know, just in case... You didn't, you know... Come back...?_ "

"Who's this kid?" Peasley asked.

Luigi sighed. "This is the Potion Master. She's...a mute telepathic magic child..." He shook his head. "God, all these explanations and interruptions are starting to make my head spin..."

"It's fine, I feel the same way," Peasley said. "I think I heard King Boo and Xylantha talking about you," he said to the Potion Master. "It's nice to meet you."

" _I mean, we did meet before. I was wearing a plague mask and kidnapped you, remember?_ " the Potion Master said. " _It's fine. Xylantha said she and Dimentio would be waiting for you in the wormhole room_."

"Okay, thank y- The WHAT?!" Luigi exclaimed. "What do you mean by the wormhole room?! I didn't see anything like that around here!"

" _What? I'm almost certain I mentioned the wormhole room to you. You know, the room with the_ _terrifying_ _wormhole where Xylantha and Clarence came from_?" She got a blank and slightly horrified look from Luigi. Peasley just looked at her expectantly. " _Not ringing any bells? Really? Huh._ " She rubbed her chin. " _You know, that door between the stairs that you completely ignored? That's it._ "

Luigi nodded slowly. "Thanks..."

"Not a problem," she said, and gave him a little salute.

As Luigi and Peasley left the room, they held hands. Luigi wouldn't have admitted it, but he was slightly leaning on Peasley.

"You know, next time you save my life?" Peasley said as they descended the steps. "Try not to get so beat up, okay?"

"I hope there doesn't have to be a next time," Luigi said. "I love seeing you alive, but hopefully I don't have to be the only one keeping you that way."

Peasley shrugged. "I don't know. I mean, what if we start a thing, kinda like what your brother has with Princess Peach and Bowser? I've always wanted to try my hand at being a damsel in distress." He giggled at his joke.

Luigi shuddered. "You know, I may have once thought it was great to be like Mario and live fast like that, but I think only once or twice is fine for me."

"Heh, I thought you would say something like that," Peasley said. "Say, is that the aforementioned wormhole room?" He pointed at the door with the "Do Not Enter" sign.

"Yeah, probably," Luigi grumbled.

Luigi and Peasley entered the room and immediately stopped in their tracks. The wormhole, in fact, was a giant rip in reality that showed endless stars and a blue planet with a strange purple atmosphere. The edges of the rip were glowing in a pattern in all the colors of the rainbow. Dimentio and Xylantha were silhouettes against the bright glow.

"...And now, he's after this world, too," Xylantha said, leaning on her cane.

"I see. How long do you think we have?" Dimentio asked.

"I don't know. If I can stall long enough, you won't have any problem at all. If I can just get the universal thread and fix this, he'll never get here in the first place. But..." She shrugged. "If I can't,I'll just stall against him as long as I can. Start off rebellions, break his charms in strategic places... I'll do my best."

Dimentio nodded solemnly. "So he's taken over the whole planet? I'm impressed. Not even the King over Chaos could have managed that."

"Why do you say that? He could have if he wasn't murdered so long ago." She paused. "What's with the look?"

"It's nothing, nothing!" Dimentio said, laughing nervously. "Oh, hello Luigi, Prince Peasley! How much of that did you hear?"

"Something about someone after this world?" Luigi asked suspiciously.

Xylantha sighed. "Yes, the Prince of Null and Void. He's taken over the planet where Dimentio and I are from." She motioned at the orb shown in the rip. "He's a power-hungry maniac, but a smart one. He's placed charms over everyone in charge before him so that they would obey him without fail, and those he didn't, he killed. I was pretending to be loyal so I wouldn't have to die and still keep my free will. Clarence is one of his true followers. We were both, ironically, feigning loyalty to King Boo as an excuse to keep the rip open. I have no idea how he did it, but the idiot managed to rip a hole in space/time, and we had to convince him it was what he intended."

"Wait, Dimentio, you're from another planet?" Luigi asked. "Is that why you don't have arms?"

Dimentio groaned and rubbed his forehead. "No, I don't have arms because- That's a different story."

"Wait, someone's going to come and try to take over our planet?!" Peasley exclaimed. "Why?!"

"I'm not sure," Xylantha said. "But that doesn't matter." She looked at the trio calmly. "If I were you, I'd prepare. He will not be an easy foe."

"Uh... You know, there are a lot more competent heroes out there then us," Luigi said nervously. "My brother for example-"

"Listen." Xylantha grabbed Luigi by the collar. "I don't care who's more competent in this world. You're the ones who know. Plus, you're Dimentio's friends." She smiled. "If you can keep that crazy guy from killing you at least twice, I think I can trust you."

"That's very specific," Peasley said. "Killing someone twice. Doesn't happen a lot."

"Actually, about that whole thing, he did kill me twice. Sort of-"

"STOP HAVING SUCH LOW SELF-ESTEEM!" Xylantha yelled. She paused, and set Luigi down gently. "Sorry, got a little frustrated there."

"Really?" Luigi said wearily. "Couldn't tell."

"Well, as much as I'd stick around, as I said, I've got some stalling to do," Xylantha said, adjusting her cloak. "Clarence has probably told the prince that King Boo's gone by now. Speedy little thing. Dimentio, I'll contact you when I can't stall him any longer. Good luck."

Xylantha stuck her hand in the wormhole, and disappeared in a flash of bright white light.

"I'm not crazy," Dimentio said sourly. "Why does everyone insult me so much?"

"Why do you think?" Luigi muttered.

"Say, where's my sword?" Peasley asked, looking around.

"Oh! It's in my suitcase, which...I left upstairs." Luigi sighed. "You guys stay here, I'll be right back!"

As soon as Luigi was out of sight, Peasley grinned indulgently. "So, you did it, didn't you?" Peasley asked.

"I'm afraid I don't know what you mean," Dimentio asked, not making eye contact.

"You told him about your feelings," Peasley said, his smile growing wider.

Dimentio glared. "How did you know that?"

Peasley laughed out loud. "It's all over your face! You're being much less...closed off, I guess would be the phrase."

"Well, what are you going to do about it? I told your boyfriend I loved him, and I've been curious about how you would react," Dimentio said.

"Nothing," Peasley said. "From what I can tell, you got rejected, so it doesn't matter. But hey, I don't mind you all that much, so it's not that bad. I mean, it could be, oh, Bowser or someone gross like that."

Dimentio stared at him. "Are you sure?"

"Definitely! Just don't go crazy about it, alright?" Peasley winked.

Luigi called from outside the room, "Got it! Let's get going, guys. This place is starting to give me the creeps."

"Agreed!" Peasley called back. "Besides, we clearly have bigger problems coming up," he said to Dimentio. "That's what I'll be focusing on."

 _As much as I hate to admit it, he's right,_ Dimentio thought. _We all have bigger fish to fry, and we already wasted enough time_. He snorted with a small burst of laughter. _At least I don't have to say that out loud, though._

* * *

The Potion Master sat on the ground, staring at King Boo's crown. She picked it up off the floor and stood up. The jewels and bright gold dazzled her eyes and reflected her own expressionless face. She threw the crown on the ground and stomped on it. When only a small dent appeared, she stomped on it repeatedly and then kicked it across the room. She breathed heavily, staring at the now broken, useless piece of metal. The jewels were fragments. Probably fake in the first place, too.

 _I hope you got what you wanted, you vile, desperate creature,_ she thought.

* * *

Author's note

First of all: THANK YOU FOR READING! Sorry for the inconsistent posting, I've been busy with school and musical theater stuff. Thank you for reading and (hopefully) enjoying my self-indulgent fic.

Second of all: Yeah, it's kinda cheap dragging out the story into ANOTHER installment. I was originally going to write this story and be done with it, but then I started thinking about what would happen afterwards and how it would be kinda shitty to leave it where I was originally going to leave it. (Xylantha was going to be some big disgusting Princess Shroob esc monster but what's the fun in that?)

Thirdly: Yeah, there's fancharacters. I'm (not) sorry.

Lastly: The next installment WILL be the last. It will be titled The Universal Thread. You can expect it to be posted sometime this summer. Maybe. If I don't have a heart attack or something like that.

Once again, thank you for reading and have a great day!


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